Age at First Breast Screening Study

Regular mammography between the ages of 50 and 70 years has been shown to reduce breast cancer mortality.  Before 2018 most women in England and Wales were first invited for breast screening in the calendar year when they turned 50, 51 or 52 years. It is not known whether this three-year range makes a difference to subsequent mortality from breast cancer.  It is this knowledge gap that this study aims to investigate.

Data routinely collected by the National Health Service (NHS) Breast Screening Programme in England on the date of first breast screening invitation have been assembled for women born in 1945-1948. These women have been followed for cause-specific mortality up to 31st December 2019. We plan to use this data to establish whether the age women were when first invited for routine screening affects mortality from breast cancer.